Netanyahu: Israel is most threatened state in world

PM says no protection can be a substitute for the striking power of the IDF, stamina and strength of Israeli public.

Netanyahu walking 370.
(photo credit:REUTERS/Menahem Kahana/Pool)

"Israel is the most threatened state in the world," Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Sunday at the start of "national emergency week."

Speaking at the weekly cabinet meeting, the prime minister said that the threats against the Israeli Home Front have significantly increased in recent years, pointing to missile and rocket threats. "We are prepared for any scenario," he stated.

Israel on Sunday began a two-day nationwide chemical warfare drill. The drill will test Home Front readiness to an unconventional weapons attack, the level of communication between civilians and authorities and municipalities' preparedness for emergency. On Monday, drill sirens will be heard nationwide.

"In recent years we have significantly increased the preparedness of the home front vis-à-vis such attack," Netanyahu said. "We are investing billions so that the home front will be better protected and better prepared. We are investing in the Iron Dome, sirens, shelters, structural reinforcement, and improved early warning systems. We will make legislative changes so as to adapt the legal reality in the State of Israel to the security reality and the concomitant threats."

The prime minister emphasized that while many changes have already taken effect, which he said was visible in the Home Front during Operation Pillar of Defense, it is difficult to achieve complete protection.

"In the end, no protection can be a substitute for the striking power of the IDF and the stamina and strength of the Israeli public in time of attack," he asserted.